Grab a ticket and check out these performances coming to Massachusetts
A still from Wahid Fest at the Middle East Club in Cambridge, Mass. on Jan. 7, 2022. Photo by Olivia Reid / Mass Media Staff
March 9, 2022
Live music is a natural part of being a fan of an artist. Boston has many great venues for performances, both for live music or live theater, so whatever you have an interest in, Boston can provide it. If you’re willing to venture out of the city, smaller cities like Providence and Worcester also have plenty of live entertainment. While fans of artists may already have their tickets, if you’re a last minute planner or simply looking for some live entertainment to fill a free night, here are just a few of the many artists coming to Massachusetts between now and August.
While most concerts in March have already passed, there are still some coming up in April to look forward to. Lorde will be performing at the Wang Theater on April 12 and 13, with tickets starting around $130 before fees (1). The New Zealand performer rose to popularity because of her debut and sophomore albums—”Pure Heroine” and “Melodrama,” respectively—as well as her international hit “Royals,” all of which had a great deal of success on the social media website Tumblr. However, the album that the tour is based off, “Solar Power,” has a brighter appearance and peppier sound than the previous two albums (2).
On April 20, Charli XCX will be playing the House of Blues with tickets starting at $80 before fees (3). Though she gained massive amounts of popularity in the early 2010s with her song “I Love It,” Charli XCX’s music has expanded across a variety of genres with pop feels. Her tour’s central album “CRASH” was released on March 18, with three singles leading up to its release—”Good Ones,” “New Shapes” and “Beg for You” featuring Rina Sawayama—and the album features a focus primarily on the ‘80s pop sound (4).
For those looking for a bit of a throwback, Aly & AJ are coming to the House of Blues on May 4 with tickets starting at $33 before fees (5). While the two sisters got their start on the Disney Channel, they had a massive spike in popularity due to their song “Potential Breakup Song” going viral on TikTok in October 2020. Their “Touch of the Beat” tour is to promote the album of the same name, which was released May 7, 2021 (6).
On May 11, Rex Orange County will be playing the Leader Bank Pavilion with tickets beginning at $87 before fees (7). While this concert takes place during the last day of classes and right before finals for the spring semester—the day after the concert is UMass Boston’s Study Day—giving concert-goers a chance to recover. As for the performer, he grew in popularity from being featured on Tyler, the Creator’s album before gaining popularity in the jazz, hip-hop and bedroom pop genres. The tour, titled the “Who Cares?” tour, is focused around an album of the same name, which was released on March 11 (8).
Coming up on June 1, Halsey will be performing at the XFinity Center in Mansfield with tickets beginning at $30 before fees (9). Like Lorde, Halsey gained massive amounts of popularity from Tumblr with her album “Badlands.” Her most recent album, “If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power” is the main album of the tour (10).
On July 9, 5 Seconds of Summer will be playing the Leader Bank Pavilion with the starting price for tickets being $137 before fees (11). The Australian band gained popularity in the 2010s due to the boy band craze of the time with bands such as One Direction, and served as an “edgier” version of the British boyband. Their “Take My Hand” tour, like many artists, was scheduled for 2020, however was rescheduled and is in support of their album “Calm” (12).
Finally, Shawn Mendes will be performing at TD Garden on Aug. 5 and 6, with tickets beginning at $71 before fees (13). Though Mendes originally got his start on Vine, he has successfully transferred away from this history, with his songs “Stitches” and “Treat You Better” becoming international hits. His tour “Wonder” is in support of the album of the same name, which was released in September 2020 (14).
If concerts aren’t your preferred type of live entertainment, there is plenty of live theater to check out as well! Broadway in Boston hosts a variety of shows for fans of theater, and occasionally UMass Boston students can get a discount on tickets through the Student Arts and Events Council. Their season includes a play adaptation of the classic novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” from April 5 to April 17, as well as three musicals: “Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations” from April 19 to May 1, “Wicked” from June 8 to July 24, and “Anastasia” from Aug. 17 to Aug. 28 (15).
For those willing to venture outside of Boston, Worcester and Providence also have great live theater options. The Hanover Theatre in Worcester has four musicals in their season: “Summer: The Donna Summer Musical” from March 31 to April 3, “Anastasia” from April 14 to April 17, “The Prom” from April 26 to May 1, and “The Band’s Visit” from June 16 to June 19 (16). The Providence Performing Arts Center has three musicals in their season as well: “Oklahoma” from March 22-27, “Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations” from April 12 to April 17, and “My Fair Lady” from May 11 to 15 (17). Broadway tours are a great way to see live entertainment for those who do not like to be confined into one date of performances, as well as enjoy a story to go with their music, and with theaters like Hanover and Providence Performing Arts Center, they also allow theatergoers to see repeating shows before or after they come to the theaters in Boston.
These are just a few of the many tours coming to the Greater Boston Area within the next few months. If none of these interest you, check out Ticketmaster for some shows for your favorite tastes in music. There are often discounts on tickets a few days before the show, making them more accessible for a college student’s budget, so if you can’t justify a price right now, keep an eye on the ticket websites! If you head out to concerts this spring and summer, be safe and have a good time; concerts have definitely been missed by music fans.
(2) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorde
(4) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charli_XCX
(6) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aly_%26_AJ
(8) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rex_Orange_County
(10) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halsey_(singer)
(12) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5_Seconds_of_Summer
(14) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shawn_Mendes#2020%E2%80%93present:_Wonder
(15) https://boston.broadway.com/
(16) https://thehanovertheatre.org/shows-tickets/broadway-show-packages/
